The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus capable of automatically reading the images of a book or similar bound document while turning over its pages, and an image forming apparatus capable of printing the images of the document in accordance with an image signal output from the image reading apparatus. More particularly, the present invention relates to an image reading apparatus advantageously applicable to a copier, facsimile apparatus, printer or similar image forming or image outputting apparatus or an image storing apparatus.
An image reading apparatus and an image forming apparatus each having the above capability are conventional. When only particular pages of a book should be automatically read or copied or otherwise output by either one of the above devices, they must be designated and have customarily been designated by any one of the following three different methods:
(1) a method causing the operator to input the start page and end page of of a spread book, i.e., the page where the image reading or image outputting operation should start and the page where it should end (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 7-110528);
(2) a method causing the operator to input the total number of pages of a book to be read or output (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 7-110529); and
(3) a method allowing the operator to designate a plurality of bunches of pages of a book by inputting the start page and end page of each bunch (see Japanese Paten Laid-Open Publication No. 7-110530).
The image reading apparatus or the image forming apparatus of the type described reads or outputs, in many cases, the images of many pages or all of the pages of a book. Because such apparatuses each is capable of automatically reading the images of a book or automatically outputting the images of the book, they must be provided with means for allowing the operator to designate the pages of a book to be read or output. It is a common practice with the apparatuses to input the pages to be read or output by using either one of the above methods (1) and (2).
The prerequisite with the methods (1) and (2), i.e., inputting the start page and end page or the total number of pages is that the last page to be read or output be accurately designated. However, with a book not paginated at all or not serially paginated, the operator must count the desired pages of the book to be read or output. In practice, therefore, it is difficult for the operator to designate the last page accurately. Further, if the operator does not know the number of pages of a book to be read or output, then the operator must set a last page greater in number than the actual last page by using the method (1) or a total number of pages greater than the actual total number of pages by using the method (2). In this case, the operator is required to stop the machine as soon as the desired last page is read or output, standing by the apparatus.
As stated above, when all the pages of a book following a certain page or the entire book should be read or copied, the conventional apparatuses do not allow the operator to designate the desired range of the book by a single touch.
This results in a time- and labor-consuming setting procedure or even makes the procedure unclear to the operator.